abounded around the neighborhood. True, I did have a full workshop, and Dad had taught me the hows and whatnots of woodworking when I was growing up, but this was something different. First of all, the Bantam is built upside down on a “strongback,” so when I started it, she gave me looks that questioned whether or not I was all there. I built the frames and mounted them, which did nothing to alleviate the feeling that either I was nuts, or in way over my head. It was hard to envision the end product from a few sticks of wood stuck on a frame. Dad’s words rang true throughout building my boat…”From time to time, it’ll seem like you’re making no progress at all and you’ll never finish. Other times you’ll begin to tire or lose patience…a beer and a moment’s rest will give you a fresh new viewpoint and help you build a better boat.” Gradually, it took shape and began to look like a real boat. The wife’s focus shifted from “do you know what you’re doing?” to “OK, so you can build a boat…now do you remember how to sail it?” Backtrack a little…to the part about the “strongback.” It’s not on the plans,
Bantam Specifications: Length: 14’ 6” LOA: 14’ Weight: 325 lbs Beam: 5’6” Mast Height: 19’6” Boom Length: 9’ Sail Area: Main- 80 SF
Jib- 45 SF Spinnaker-144 SF
Information on building a Bantam can be obtained by contacting Jim or Kathy Burlitch 2133 Ellis Hollow Road Ithaca, NY
but it is in the supplemental instructions that Jim and Kathy included when they sent me the updated plans and in the article Dad wrote back in the early 60’s. Thank goodness for research! Finding good wood nowadays can be somewhat bedeviling, but persistence and a good supplier helps a lot. First of all, much of the boat was originally built with a lot of mahogany. Finding
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48° NORTH, SEPTEMBER 2011 PAGE 54
“true” mahogany is nearly impossible, but having a good supplier available will help when you look for a substitute. I found some oak on sale at the local Windsor Plywood store for the frames, and with the help of an engineer friend, transitioned the frame size to an appropriate dimension. When I got into the keel, centerboard trunk and some of the other parts, they came to the rescue with some non-standard sized “faux” mahogany that fit the bill once you ran it through the planer a few times. The original specifications call for the mast and boom to be made out of Sitka Spruce, but finding sticks of spruce that are straight and about 20 feet long in today’s lumber market are few and far between. Again, enter the local Windsor Plywood store and some special ordering from a specialty wood supplier in Seattle, and “Voila,”,enter a piece of clear, spar grade Sitka spruce for the mast and boom. Cedar plays a big part in the construction, so improvisation is best here, with a nod to Home Depot and Lowes for cedar decking that you can cut down or use as is for construction elements. A word of advice, find a supplier that knows
Complete SAILBOAT RIGGING from Masthead to Chainplates
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